Bursary awards are to help students aged 16-19 who face financial barriers to completing their College course. Students from a household on specified benefits (see below), or with an income under £25,000 per year, may qualify for support towards:

Working Tax Credit run on – paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit

Universal Credit (must replace named eligible benefit)

Support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

Working Tax Credit

Child Tax Credit (when not entitled to Working Tax Credit) and have a total annual gross household income of no more than £16,190 as assessed by HMRC

OR

Household annual income under £25,000

Students/parents may complete an application for a Bursary before starting at Paston so that help is available immediately - please see below. However, please note that proof of income will need to relate to family income on 1st September 2017. Please also note that you must tell us if your income changes during the course of the academic year.

All awards are conditional on satisfactory attendance and behaviour – please see ‘Terms and Conditions’ below.

Travel to College costs

Travel to College will be free for all Paston students on the Bursary.

The Norfolk County Council standard travel charge for students within the Paston ‘core area’ (see map on our website) is £516 per year. This will be refunded to students who qualify for the Discretionary Bursary at Paston (family income £25,000 or under). Norfolk County Council offers different options for passes – You can purchase either a full year pass, Termly pass or half termly pass. More details can be found on the NCC website.

We ask that you purchase the travel pass in the first instance and then apply for a refund in the usual way (complete Expense Form and provide proof of purchase)

If you live outside the ‘core area’ and have higher travel costs, the Bursary will refund the actual cost up to a maximum value of £716 p.a. (£516 standard travel charge, plus up to £200 'out of core area' subsidy). To claim this refund you will have to provide proof of the actual cost of your travel.

Materials Charge

For 2017/8 the Materials Charge will be £85 (£60 of which will be paid automatically for eligible Bursary students) but you must pay the REFUNDABLE DEPOSIT of £25 at Enrolment as the £25 returnable deposit is not covered by the Bursary.

‘Automatic’ payments and other payment requests

The Bursary will fund - where such expenses are incurred - up to £750 to cover the following:

Materials Charge of £60

Print credit allowance of £30

The above payments will be made automatically on receipt of a completed Bursary application form and the relevant proof: Download form here

For any other costs the student will need to make a separate application for support. This is done using the Bursary ‘Expense Request’ form: Download form here

Bursary Terms and Conditions

To be eligible to receive a bursary in the 2017 to 2018 academic year the student must be aged 16 or over but under 19 at 31 August 2017.

Students aged 19 or over are only eligible to receive a discretionary bursary if they:

are continuing on a study programme they began aged 16 to 18 (‘19+ continuers’) or

have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)

All Bursary payments are conditional upon the student meeting acceptable standards of attendance and behaviour. If attendance is classified as ‘red’ (below 85%) bursary payments may be suspended.

The College may review this policy at any time in the light of demand for financial assistance in any one year.